1. The Field of the Invention
This invention relates to access control between two or more network elements. More particularly, this invention relates to enforcing access privileges between interacting modems employing a defined protocol standard.
2. Present State of the Art
Traditional security and communication systems have employed a full spectrum of techniques from very simplistic techniques to extremely sophisticated and secure cryptographic methods. Many applications require stringent security measures for the protection of information traveling across the communication channel.
However, other communication channels may rely upon more simplistic techniques for preventing or at least greatly inhibiting unauthorized access to information on either end of a communication channel.
Traditional information security has generally been provided through the use of authentication and cryptographic information at a high level in a protocol communication stack. For example, authentication and access control are generally controlled at an application level where a communication channel has been established and the respective entities of the communication channel are interacting using an established communication protocol. Modern sophisticated communication protocols often utilize an extensive interactive process for establishing and refining a communication channel to enhance the data rate between the respective entities, namely modems. Access control is thereafter established at a higher protocol level. In thus allowing the respective entities of a communication channel to establish a link between the two entities for the purpose of verifying and authenticating the respective entities, the communication channel entities have in an unlimited respect opened themselves and made access available to the unauthenticated party. Furthermore, such an access evaluation process is generally performed, as discussed above, at a higher application level requiring a significant amount of processing and preparatory work to be performed by the various communication channel entities.
Thus, what is needed is a method of implementing security to enforce access privileges between communication channel entities, such as a calling modem, and an answering modem at a lower level in a protocol communication stack that does not introduce a substantial exposure to the entities by establishing higher level communication channels prior to enforcing, or alternatively restricting, the access of one entity to the other. Thus, it appears that there exists no present technique for providing a low level method of implementing security, such as link level security, to enforce access privileges between a calling modem and an answering modem over a communication channel. Therefore, a need exists for providing such a method wherein access control may be performed at a lower and more introductory phase of the establishment of a communication channel.